Severe Nocardia pneumonia in an immunocompromised patient with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.

Pulmonary nocardiosis is an uncommon pulmonary infection that is more likely found in immunocompromised patients with underlying chronic lung disease. The presentation of pulmonary nocardiosis is widely variable and shares features with other types of pulmonary infections. Nocardia is also not as easily isolated on standard culture mediums and hence more difficult to identify. We describe the case of a patient with a severe necrotising pneumonia who was chronically immunosuppressed with steroids and has alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency.

CRyptOcoccosis in Newcastle and the hUnTer (CRONUT) - An epidemiological study.

BACKGROUND: Cryptococcus neoformans and Cryptococcus gattii are yeasts responsible for invasive infection, primarily pulmonary and neurological. Their clinical epidemiology has been previously described in an Australian national study, but this included no data from the Hunter region, where we anecdotally noted a high incidence of infection. We aimed to describe the epidemiology, management and outcomes of cryptococcal disease in the Hunter region and to compare this with previous Australian data. METHODS: We searched our laboratory database for positive cryptococcal antigen and culture results from January 2003-December 2016. We extracted demographic factors, risk factors, clinical presentation, treatment and outcomes from medical records. We used the 2010 census-derived estimated resident population to calculate population-based incidences. RESULTS: Over a 13-year period, 107 patients had either a positive culture or a positive cryptococcal antigen with a compatible clinical syndrome. Of these, 46 (42.2%) were C. neoformans, 28 (25.7%) C. gattii, and 33 (30.3%) antigen only. The crude incidence (per million with 95% CI) for all disease was 9.5, and for culture proven disease was 2.5 for C. gattii and 4.1 for C. neoformans. Geospatial mapping by species revealed no evident cluster. Of the 63 patients where detailed information was available, around half were immunocompromised (3 [15%] for C. gattii and 25 [81%] for C. neoformans, p < 0.001). Complications were common, including visual loss (11 cases, 17.7%) and hearing loss (5 cases, 8%). Adverse outcomes at one year (death or neurological sequelae) occurred in 42%, and was significantly more likely (OR = 5.2, 95% CI 1.4-18.8) in those with raised intracranial pressure at baseline. Adverse outcomes were no more common in those treated with lower doses of liposomal amphotericin (≤150 mg/day, 5/10) than those treated with the recommended dose of 3-5 mg/kg (≥150 mg; 13/27). CONCLUSION: Although a rare disease, cryptococcosis is more common in the Hunter region than in other parts of Australia, and long-term sequelae are serious and common.

Is gentamicin safe and effective for severe community-acquired pneumonia? An 8-year retrospective cohort study.

Gram-negative bacilli are the causative organisms in a significant proportion of patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Clinical guidelines recommend broad-spectrum antimicrobials for empirical treatment despite alarming global trends in antimicrobial resistance. In this study, we aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of gentamicin, an aminoglycoside with potent bactericidal activity, for empirical Gram-negative coverage of severe CAP in patients admitted to the ICU. A retrospective cohort study was performed at a university teaching hospital where the severe CAP guideline recommends penicillin, azithromycin and gentamicin as empirical cover. Ceftriaxone plus azithromycin is used as an alternative. Adults with radiologically-confirmed severe CAP were included, comparing those who received gentamicin in the first 72 h of admission with those who did not. Participants were identified using ICD-10 codes for bacterial pneumonia and data manually extracted from electronic medical records. Of 148 patients admitted with severe pneumonia, 117 were given at least one dose of gentamicin whereas the remaining 31 were not. The two groups were well matched in terms of demographics, co-morbidities and disease severity. There were no significant differences between the gentamicin and no-gentamicin groups in the incidence of acute kidney injury [60/117 (51%) vs. 16/31 (52%), respectively], hospital mortality [20/117 (17%) vs. 7/31 (23%)] and secondary outcomes including relapse and length of hospital stay. In conclusion, gentamicin is safe and has similar outcomes to alternative Gram-negative antimicrobial regimens for empirical coverage in severe CAP patients admitted to the ICU.